President Gustavo Petro opened a new debate with the country’s businessmen for the money to the implementation of the Peace Agreement with the FARC. The controversy arose from statements made by the president in the Casa de Nariño.
(Read: Internationalize the state airline Satena, the purpose of Petro).
“La Andi, for example, tells us that it is very bad to pay taxes for $21 billion pesos, taking away tax privileges that have been configured over the decades. But the first point of the agreement is worth 60 not 21, so what they are telling us is that the peace agreement cannot be fulfilled”, declared the head of state.
Before his statements, the Andi President, Bruce Mac Masterresponded: “It is not correct to pose a false dilemma between taxes and peace, in two years the State is ALREADY increasing its collection by 82 billion pesos. Maintaining and creating employment should be at the center of Peace.”
Petro’s statements came in the midst of the possession of Pablo Francisco Pardo as director of the Fund for Special Programs for Peace of the Administrative Department of the Presidency of the Republic (Dapre).
During his speech, the president criticized the institutions dedicated to the implementation of the agreements that were inherited from past administrations. Petro claimed that he found a labyrinth of entities around the implementationwhich he considers to be a mechanism for not carrying it out.
(Also: Why the Government would be willing to raise less than $25 billion).
“What stabilization here, I don’t know what there, the regional territorial agency there, the peace fund here, another peace fund there. None has the capacity to make the peace agreements with the FARC a reality“, said.
Five years ago, the FARC signed the peace agreement with the government of Juan Manuel Santos.
As an example, the president explained that it is requiredand deliver to the peasantry three million fertile hectares to comply with the first agreement of the Final Agreement, entitled “Towards a New Colombian Countryside: Comprehensive Rural Reform”. However, when he asked former and current officials about the economic investment necessary to fulfill that point, no one was able to prove him right.
Along with this, Petro pointed out that they have lied about the implementation of the agreements and the money for their management: “If that money is not there, even if it is annualized, and we set a four-year program to comply with the agreements, then they should tell the truth: the Colombian State has decided not to comply with the peace agreements with the FARC, head on and without fear. But telling lies, hiding from public opinion that, for example, there is talk of institutions with the name of peace, but none can even fulfill the first point, so what are we talking about?”
At that time, the head of state reproached Andi for complaining about paying taxes of 21 billion pesos when that It implies barriers for the implementation of what was agreed with the FARC.
“If the first point of the first requirement is worth 30 to 60 billion, then what do we do? The richest of the rich do not want to pay taxes, they want working people to pay it, as if that were social justice, as if that were a social pact and a social pact, it is a pact for peace“, said.
(Read: Minminas talks about advances in mining, hydrocarbons and energy).
Finally, the president said that the path to peace in Colombia had been confused because it is thought to be military surrender or victory. For him, more than just 30 billion pesos is needed.
“Does it seem more profitable to us then to spend what is worth all the agreed agrarian reform in a year of war, and then we have to put another 60 billion in the second year? Is that more effective, is it more intelligent, is it more rational?” , he pointed out.
BRIEFCASE-
